BG1 Portraits.

SionIV

This is a quick question which portraits in BG1 you think look nice, and which you think look like Sh..

You are only allowed to list the two best portraits and the two worst. And please leave a little comment behind with the reasons for picking the ones you did.

[Good]

1.) Eldoth.

To hell with the Sword Coast problems and the bhaalspawn running around, this guy just looks like he is having a wonderful time. He is obviously very sober.

2.) Montaron

It's pretty much everything i would imagine him being like, it's one of those 10/10 with personality in my opinion.

[Bad]

1.) Faldorn

What the hell happened here? How did this even get into the released game?

2.) Shar-Teel

Everything in this picture just went to hell. The ugly helm along with the odd facial markings, and that facial expression?

ajwz

Never liked Faldorn or Garrick, or that Gnome who looks like a farmer.

DarkDogg

Jaheira (favourite one) and Branwen - best portraits.
Also like the default character portraits: Abdel - the default male portrait, a redhaired girl with a sword and a blond elven girl with a green hat.
Eldoth and Skie are O.K.
Deder and Arkanis are nice too.

Dynaheirs and Viconias portraits are very ugly. Especially compared to the BG2 portrait.

And the new NPC portraits - Neera, Dorn and Rassad doesn't even pass to other BG1 style portraits.
If they keep their portraits as they are in BG2 - it will be a catostrophe.

Corvino

I prefer Jaheira's BG1 portrait to her BG2 one. She looks a lot tougher in BG1 which fits better with her personality.

Dino

I dont get why people dislike Faldorns portrait. Shes a crazy witch and very consistent with her portrait!

I think overall the BG1 portraits look more photorealistic than the BG2 ones which look more paintbrushy.

I would really like if they included a Bunch of new ones with the patch or BG2 release. The reason to add them into the package is so people can use them in multiplayer games without having to share resources externally.

jackjack

I also much prefer Jaheira's BG1 portrait to her BG2 one. And I clearly like Eldoth's portrait, seeing as how I used that for mine throughout the saga. The only one I don't really like is Garrick's - he just looks out of it, although I supposed that may have been the idea.

SCARY_WIZARD

jackjack said:

The only one I don't really like is Garrick's - he just looks out of it, although I supposed that may have been the idea.

Heh, heh, alternate character interpretation!

mylegbig

Dino said:

I think overall the BG1 portraits look more photorealistic than the BG2 ones which look more paintbrushy.

True, but most of the females in BG1 are ugly as hell. To hell with realism. I see enough ugly people in life; I don't want to see them in game as well. Some of these girls I wouldn't touch with my friend's dick, and I'm not known for having the highest of standards.

CoM_Solaufein

I will say Viconia's BG1 portrait is absolutely ugly. Her BG2 portrait rules over all.

recklessheart

None of the BG2 portraits are bad, save arguably for Edwin's which granted unnecessary 'improvements' to detail. As for the BG1 portraits, I daresay that none of them are bad, as such. People's main complaint seems to be that the female characters do not all look like the kind of woman you'd want to have sex with. Well...tough luck

That said, Viconia's portrait is rather bizarre. Not objectionable, but I don't think it suits her.
Montaron's portrait I don't like either, primarily because Montaron has never struck me as a halfling. He speaks and behaves much more like a dwarf, in my opinion.

The best portraits for me, and the ones I like to use for my PCs, would be Eldoth, Garrick, Skie and Safana's. I do like Jaheira's, but definately not as much as her BG2 portrait.

CutlassJack

Jaheria is the only one I prefer the BG1 portrait much more than the BG2 version. She's about the only one I never change. Viconia is the worst in BG1. She doesn't even look like a Drow.

meagloth

I did not like the bg2 style of portrait. I liked the photorealism of bg1 much better, so in my opinion:

Best:
Edwin bg1
Second best:
Khalid

Worst:
Edwin bg2
Second worst:
The first default male in bg1 with the bald head. Has anyone in the history of bg ever used this?

I also like skie's portrait, and the default female portraits.

KidCarnival

Eldoth wins this topic. The portrait fits the character and voice perfectly.
In second place, Edwin. I much prefer it to the BG2 portrait. And it looks like the sprite (once he has a hooded robe), which is always a plus.

Honorable mentions to Xzar; I like how absolutely batshit insane he looks and Kivan; I like his portrait except it's a bit too specific with the archery. If he actually had the Archer kit by default, this might be my second place. Minsc also looks good and matches the character. I also like Dynaheir's portrait, just not for Dynaheir.

Horrible: Coran The Chinless is awful. Imoen is in second place; she looks too old and nothing like an NPC or even an adventurer at all. More like "voice of Random Guard #3, portrait of Tavern Patron #5".

Honorable mentions: Shar-Teel's portrait doesn't match her sprite (blond vs red hair, come on, it's not impossible with the limited palette). Skie, while not a bad portrait, doesn't match her character at all. It looks way too old and transports nothing of her brattiness.

SharGuidesMyHand

I think people here are confusing "ugly" with "bad."

Shar-Teel and Faldorn aren't supposed to be "attractive" women - one is a manly amazon who lives in a desert-like wasteland, and the other is a crazy environmental activist who lives in the woods (incidentally, the same woman was used as a model for both portraits, and also for BG1 Viconia - that must've been flattering to her, LOL).

By contrast, BG1 Imoen and Skie are attractive portraits IMO, but they don't suit the characters' personalities (both look a bit too old).

Having said that, I think all of the BG1 portraits look nice. The BG2 portraits look sloppy by comparison. Not only are they less realistic, but the angles and proportions of the faces are often screwed up - especially on Aerie and Jaheira.

SionIV

There is one thing i don't understand, what is this with "BG2 portraits are less realistic". The BG2 portraits are leagues above the BG1 because they AREN'T realistic. The BG1 portraits look like bad cosplay gone wrong to be honest, and i much prefer the BG2 ones.

This is like Resident Evil 1 all over again.

Dino

mylegbig said:

Dino said:

I think overall the BG1 portraits look more photorealistic than the BG2 ones which look more paintbrushy.

True, but most of the females in BG1 are ugly as hell. To hell with realism. I see enough ugly people in life; I don't want to see them in game as well. Some of these girls I wouldn't touch with my friend's dick, and I'm not known for having the highest of standards.

Keep in mind that this is not a breeding simulator. Its a well written (and... relatively original) rpg.

CoM_Solaufein said:

I will say Viconia's BG1 portrait is absolutely ugly. Her BG2 portrait rules over all.

Complete disagree. I think her BG1 portrait is awesome, where the BG2 one is just unemotional, cheap and bland.

TJ_Hooker

I don't think people's problem with the femal BG1 portraits is that they're ugly, per se. For me it's more the WTF expressions/poses. Like with Faldorn. I mean, is she playing with a child and pretending to be the 'big bad monster' or something? Or with Shar-teel. It kind of looks like she's trying to snarl, but it just came out all wrong.

Astafas

Coran is a joke. No chin, not even elven ears. Yellow teeth. He's plain ugly, and still supposed to be successful with the ladies?

Corvino

Charisma isn't just looking good. It's a number value reflecting looks, confidence, charm and wit. Coran is evidently one smooth talker.

Dino

Astafas said:

Coran is a joke. No chin, not even elven ears. Yellow teeth. He's plain ugly, and still supposed to be successful with the ladies?

As Corvino explains, its called Charisma (not Looks).
You can be successful with the ladies without being a radiant looker, even in Faerûn apparently.

Having said that, I wouldnt be too quick to judge someones appearance based on one flamboyant portrait.

mylegbig

SionIV said:

There is one thing i don't understand, what is this with "BG2 portraits are less realistic". The BG2 portraits are leagues above the BG1 because they AREN'T realistic. The BG1 portraits look like bad cosplay gone wrong to be honest, and i much prefer the BG2 ones.

This is like Resident Evil 1 all over again.

Also true. The BG1 photos are more realistic because they're basically photoshopped photos. It's the same technique that they use for the covers of trashy romance novels and it's why you see obvious mistakes like Coran looking like a human instead of an elf.

As for the BG2 portraits looking like they're "drawn," it's because they actually are.

mylegbig

Dino said:

mylegbig said:

Dino said:

I think overall the BG1 portraits look more photorealistic than the BG2 ones which look more paintbrushy.

True, but most of the females in BG1 are ugly as hell. To hell with realism. I see enough ugly people in life; I don't want to see them in game as well. Some of these girls I wouldn't touch with my friend's dick, and I'm not known for having the highest of standards.

Keep in mind that this is not a breeding simulator. Its a well written (and... relatively original) rpg.

What does the game being well written have anything to do with the attractiveness of the portraits? (although honestly, BG1's writing is rather inconsistent, but that's off topic) Frankly, I suspect that the general unattractiveness of the women has more to do with Bioware originally being too cheap to hire any decent models than anything else.

Dino

mylegbig said:

SionIV said:

There is one thing i don't understand, what is this with "BG2 portraits are less realistic". The BG2 portraits are leagues above the BG1 because they AREN'T realistic. The BG1 portraits look like bad cosplay gone wrong to be honest, and i much prefer the BG2 ones.

This is like Resident Evil 1 all over again.

Also true. The BG1 photos are more realistic because they're basically photoshopped photos. It's the same technique that they use for the covers of trashy romance novels and it's why you see obvious mistakes like Coran looking like a human instead of an elf.

As for the BG2 portraits looking like they're "drawn," it's because they actually are.

Haha. Then consider the irony of people demanding 'hotter chicks' for their ingame - and undeniably trashy - romances

One would think these players would be right at home with this apparently well-established and trashy art-direction...

Calmar

I like Skie's portrait. She's the only attractive person in the original BG1, IMO. Minsc is cool, too, despite not looking towards the observer. Other than these I am not partial to any of the portraits. To me, they're much better in BG II and the Icewind Dales.

BTW, am I the only one who thinks Eldoth doth look a bit like Charlie Sheen?

TJ_Hooker

mylegbig said:

SionIV said:

There is one thing i don't understand, what is this with "BG2 portraits are less realistic". The BG2 portraits are leagues above the BG1 because they AREN'T realistic. The BG1 portraits look like bad cosplay gone wrong to be honest, and i much prefer the BG2 ones.

This is like Resident Evil 1 all over again.

Also true. The BG1 photos are more realistic because they're basically photoshopped photos. It's the same technique that they use for the covers of trashy romance novels and it's why you see obvious mistakes like Coran looking like a human instead of an elf.

As for the BG2 portraits looking like they're "drawn," it's because they actually are.

Well there's at least one BG2 portrait that's based off a real photo (Viconia).

Basillicum

The Good

1. Eldoth
I have to agree with OP and many others on this. It fits extremely well for the character.

2. Kagain
His beard captures alot of the attention, but studying the portrait closer I can see it fit very well for Kagain. A resilient businessman and drunkard, determined to cut down anyone who ends up in his way. Seriously, I try imagining meeting that beard and those slitted eyes in combat, and I almost pee my pants. There's no anger or furious battle rage, just determination and impatience from his last hangover.


The Bad

1. Tiax
Doesn't fit his personality or voiceset at all. Not at all.

2. Kivan
He doesn't look like an elf. Not to me, at least.


The Ugly

1. Viconia
Like everyone else I prefer her BG2 portrait, and her BG1 portrait is really really bad. Doesn't even look like a drow.

2. Alora
What's going on with her eyebrows?!

Dino

Calmar said:

I like Skie's portrait. She's the only attractive person in the original BG1, IMO. Minsc is cool, too, despite not looking towards the observer. Other than these I am not partial to any of the portraits. To me, they're much better in BG II and the Icewind Dales.

BTW, am I the only one who thinks Eldoth doth look a bit like Charlie Sheen?

I definately dig Minscs portrait aswell. The fact that he is not looking at the camera is pretty much what makes it. Lots of emotion in it too.

mylegbig

Dino said:

Haha. Then consider the irony of people demanding 'hotter chicks' for their ingame - and undeniably trashy - romances

One would think these players would be right at home with this apparently well-established and trashy art-direction...

It's because people are actually attractive in those covers. I mean, who wouldn't want to make sweet love to Fabio's man meat?

The fantasy and romance genres aren't that far removed from each other really, which is why both often use a similar style for their covers (except one has swords and the other has... shirts unbottoned to their navels).

Calmar said:

I like Skie's portrait. She's the only attractive person in the original BG1, IMO. Minsc is cool, too, despite not looking towards the observer. Other than these I am not partial to any of the portraits. To me, they're much better in BG II and the Icewind Dales.

BTW, am I the only one who thinks Eldoth doth look a bit like Charlie Sheen?

Yes, the IWD portraits are great. I usually use them for my PCs.

Dino

I agree with the IWD portraits being the best of the different art directions.

They look painted but not in a paintbrushy cheap way. The posings are more varied and original.

KidCarnival

Dino said:

Astafas said:

Coran is a joke. No chin, not even elven ears. Yellow teeth. He's plain ugly, and still supposed to be successful with the ladies?

As Corvino explains, its called Charisma (not Looks).
You can be successful with the ladies without being a radiant looker, even in Faerûn apparently.

Having said that, I wouldnt be too quick to judge someones appearance based on one flamboyant portrait.

Somewhere in my posting history is a long winded argument why Khalid can have low charisma, but not be conventionally ugly. I certainly see where you are coming from. But... Coran's portrait is atrocious. If even Quayle looks better, the women of Faerun are either blind or the least realistic fantasy creatures in the game, if so many of them are willing to give a drop dead ugly dude a chance based only on his smooth talking; enough to count as a womanizer.
The NPCs in BG1 are mostly stereotypes with a few voiced lines, there's no denying that. You can summarize most of them in one line. Imoen is the cheerful, bubbly one. Xzar is the crazy evil guy. Montaron is the antisocial psychopath. And so on. For Coran, it's "the charming ladies man". His portrait should reflect the stereotype (most of his banters do not, so there's that, too), just like the others. Coran is just neither here nor there.

As for attractiveness, I really don't care if Shar-Teel is attractive or not. My issue is that the portrait doesn't match the sprite. The hair color of the portrait is available for sprites in vanilla (and before the NPCs were recolored). It's just sloppy to not match it.

Autequi

TJ_Hooker said:

I don't think people's problem with the femal BG1 portraits is that they're ugly, per se. For me it's more the WTF expressions/poses. Like with Faldorn. I mean, is she playing with a child and pretending to be the 'big bad monster' or something? Or with Shar-teel. It kind of looks like she's trying to snarl, but it just came out all wrong.

I guess that's what happens when you grab a wandering programmer and tell them to strike a martial pose!

If you look closely, you'll realize Viconia, Shar-Teel, and Skie are painted from the same person. Alora too, possibly. She's pretty attractive. So please stop ragging on Viconia and Shar-Teel because they're not pouting like adult models.